On May 1, 2017 Congress passed a budget that did not include funding for the Assets for Independence (AFI) Individual Development Account (IDA) program. We need you to call your Congressmen (House and Senate) and ask them to reinstate AFI IDA finding for FY 2018.

SCACED's IDA program which matches low income individuals savings 3:1 towards the purchase of a home, start a small business or go back to school started in 2000.

2. When you speak with your Senators, also ask them to sign on to Senator Merkley’s “Dear Colleague” letter (attached) in support of AFI in the FY18 budget. Deadline is Friday, June 30 to sign on! This “Dear Colleague” letter of support will be one of the last opportunities to fight to get AFI back in the budget, so I hope you’ll take a few minutes to remind your Senators of the impact of this cut.

Paul Weech, President & CEO of NeighborWorks America has been chosen as the keynote speaker for our annual conference, Opportunity SC: 2017. NeighborWorks America is a nearly 40-year-old, Congressionally chartered nonprofit serving more than 245 of the strongest nonprofits working in housing and community development. Visit www.opportunitysc.org.

The SC Association for Community Economic Development along with many partner advocates worked for years to lower taxes on low-wage South Carolinians and their families through a refundable state-level EITC worth 20 percent of the federal credit.

On May 11, 2017 a nonrefundable EITC worth 125% of the federal credit was tacked on to the "Roads" bill by Democratic lawmakers in an attempt to mitigate the burden of a proposed gas tax on lower-income workers. Governor Henry McMaster (R) vetoed the legislation on Wednesday for reasons unrelated to the EITC, but the legislature overrode his veto today, and the bill goes into effect July 1.

"Although the enactment of a state-level EITC will bring much-needed tax relief to many low-wage South Carolinians, the credit could benefit many more if it were eventually made refundable. Those earning the least owe little to no income tax and are often unable to benefit from nonrefundable EITCs, despite paying other taxes like sales and payroll. According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, only about 2% of South Carolinians with the lowest incomes (below $21,000) will benefit from the new EITC. Eventually making the credit refundable would help more of these families make ends meet. to sustain and enhance their programs, activities, and services." - Tax Credits for Workers and Their Families (TCWF)

The annual County Health Rankings will be released on March 29th. The health of nearly all counties in the nation is measured and then ranked within the states. The rankings are compiled using county-level measures from a variety of national and state data sources. This valuable tool enables you to view an overview and comparison of South Carolina's counties complete with downloads of relative documents dating back to 2010.

The rankings are based on a model of population health that emphasizes the many factors that, if improved, can help make communities healthier places to live, learn, work and play. Building on the work of America's Health Rankings, the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute has used this model to rank the health of Wisconsin’s counties every year since 2003.